Give Love A Try
by FlameBitchx3
Summary: He was just a shy nobody, until a certain bubbly blonde came around. Claire x Cliff.
1. New Town, New People

**Author's Notes:** I've been meaning to put up a Claire x Cliff. Sadly, I have to rewrite this because my dad's laptop got a virus. Which means I need to stop using my dad's laptop for writing stories... Anyways, for those of you who have read Stolen Heart, Claire's personality will change. She's cheerful, bubbly, and causes a lot of chaos. It will also be told from a third person point of view. The setting Forget-Me-Not Valley (HMDS Cute, again. lol) Anyways, I hope you enjoy!

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><p>It was a quiet morning in Forget-Me-Not Valley, as the sun slowly peeked from the horizon. Although it seemed calm and relaxed, chaos was about to begin. In the valley resided a perky young blonde, who had just recently moved into the old unoccupied farm. She had came from the city not too long ago, and in just five days was able to cause the town to turn upside down. Some residents thought she was an adorable little soul who just happened to attract bad luck, whilst others thought she was a complete imbecile, and the rest didn't know what to think. Even though she was a bit accident-prone, she was a bubbly spirit that everyone couldn't resist having around.<p>

The town changed Monday, when she had arrived to Forget-Me-Not Valley and went out the the Blue Bar to meet Muffy and Griffin. She had knocked over wine rack, making a enormous mess and wasting half of the Blue Bar's supply. Tuesday, she had went off to meet Flora and Carter, almost causing the mines to cave in. Wednesday, she had went with her dog to Vesta's farm to meet with her dog to Vesta's farm to meet everyone that resided there. Her pup made sure to make the visit an unpleasant one, as it dug up all of Vesta's crops. Thursday, she went down to Kassey and Patrick's factory, nearly causing it to explode. Last but definitely not least, Friday, when she actually did cause something to explode, by accidentally adding a couple of potions in the Witch Princess' mixture. Before she knew it, she had gained a reputation in less then a week.

The blonde moaned when her alarm went off. She let out a big yawn, propped herself upright and rubbed her eyes. Glancing over at the alarm clock, her eyes widened.

"What is this? 6am?" She shouted, swiping the alarm clock up and turning it off.

She stood up, stretched her back, hearing a couple of cracks. Satisfied, she walked over to the trunk filled with her clothes. She let out a heavy sigh.

"They shoved the same old thing in here; blue overalls and a orange and white plaid shirt!" She complained, then shook her head. "Now Claire, you can pull this off." She said to herself. "Who cares if its the same, I still look great!" She smiled and nodded her head, looking at the bright side.

Walking out the door with a bounce in each step, she went over to the small turnip garden she had made on Monday. She smiled widely, and spotted Takakura coming out of his home at the usual time.

"Takakura! Takakura! Look at my garden! Come look!" She yelled across the field, jumping up and down.

He walked over, his normal unamused expression remaining the same. "What is it, Claire? What's with all the shouting this early in the morning?" He asked, looking down at the smaller girl in front him.

"Look at my turnip garden! It's starting to –" She cut herself off once she looked down.

With the all the jumping she had did, she stepped on two of the sprouting turnip crops. Her smiled faded away and she sighed.

"Should be more careful next time, Claire. It's okay." He patted her head and began to walk away.

She shrugged. "Well, that means more space for other crops! Yeah! I'll got buy some at Vesta's shop!" She nodded, then looked over at her garden once more. "I'll just finish up here and then be on my way!" She pulled out the damaged crops and watered the remaining seven.

Takakura heard Claire and chuckled. _She seems very optimistic for her age. She really doesn't let anything bother her... _He though for a moment, before heading towards town.

Once she was finished, she grabbed some gold and skipped down to the path that would guide her to the Main Area. She enjoyed the breeze hitting her face and the sun kissing her cheeks. She enjoyed it so much, that she got distracted and bumped into an awkward-looking young man, who had tan skin with violet eyes.

"Oh! S-sorry..." He stuttered, looking away and blushing a bit.

Claire nodded. "No, I should be apologizing, I bumped into you after all!" She smiled then quickly looked him up and down. "Hey, I haven't seen you around here before..."

"Y-yeah... I'm arriving from Mineral Town." He mumbled and shifted his eyes side to side and constantly fidgeting. _How long is she going to keep talking? I don't even know her name... _He thought.

"Ooo! A foreigner! Nice to meet you, I'm Claire! I just moved into that farm over there." She pointed to the path that lead to her ranch. "What's your name?" She asked curiously, anxiously waiting his reply.

He smiled nervously, but refused to make eye contact the blonde girl in front of him. "My name's Cliff..." He said.

_He seems shy, he doesn't even look at me. _She smiled. "What brought you here, Cliff?" She asked. "Seems like a pretty long walk for a empty village that has nothing to offer. Well, except for it's beauty from nature!" She smiled, remembering the feeling she had felt before.

"Well I... I like to stay at the Inn." He mumbled, gesturing timidly towards the Inner Inn behind Claire.

Claire looked back. "Oh! So you like the Inn, huh? Well, I haven't been there yet. I need to get going though, I have some errands to run. How about I meet you there?" She suggested.

"S-Sure I guess..." _I've never met a girl so cheery like her... she's just so energetic. _He thought, admiring the girl for just a moment.

"Great! See you there!" She said, before running off towards the stone bridge that would take her to Vesta's farm.

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><p>"And two bags full of strawberry seeds, please! Claire chirped, as she got read to pay for her seeds. Vesta told her the total price and Claire reached for her money.<p>

"Woah." She said to herself, after realizing that she was going to spend all her money on some seeds. "Maybe I'm buying too much.." I won't have any more money left." She mumbled to herself, then shrugged. "Oh well! Looks like I'm gong to have to go out tomorrow and grab some grasses to sell!" She smiled and handed the money to Vesta. "Thanks, Claire!" She shouted as the cheerful girl skipped out the door.

"She sure is bright, ain't she Marlin?" Vesta commented, turning to look at him.

He nodded. "Shines more then the sun." He replied before continuing. "A little too much..." He muttered under his breath, while he grabbed some seeds from storage and headed for the door. He was the one who had to replant all of the crops Claire's dog had destroyed.

"Excuse me, in what room does Cliff reside in?" Claire asked the woman behind the counter. She had walking into the Inn immediately after leaving Vesta's farm.

"So, you must be the little mischievous Claire I've heard so much about." She said before smiling. "Well, aren't you adorable? How could someone like you possible cause any harm?" She asked, as she reached out to touch Claire's hair.

She laughed nervously. "I won't cause any trouble, I promise!"

"Don't worry darling, I believe you. As for Cliff, he's in the kitchen. Quiet boy, doesn't really talk to anyone. I'm surprised you know him!" She commented.

"Oh Cliff? I just met him this morning! I was able to start a conversation with him. He's seems really nice, so I'm going to try to be his friend!" She beamed, smiling brightly.

"Well, good luck. He's very self-reserved, doesn't open up to anyone." She stated, nodding her head.

"There's not a person in the world I can't befriend!" She shouted before heading towards the kitchen door.

She opened the door just a bit, to see what Cliff was doing. When the young blonde looked, he was staring at the table in front of him, back facing her. _I wonder what he's doing.. _she pondered for a while. Claire quietly went inside, closing the door behind her. Cliff didn't seem to hear the noise.

She poked him. "Cliff? What are you doing?" she asked, tilting her head to the side a bit.

"Yikes!" shouted Cliff, jumping up then turning around to face Claire. "Oh, h-hi Claire..." the brunet mumbled, looking at the ground. A pink tint appeared on his cheeks, due to the fact that Claire was able to frighten him. "Do you um... do you want something?"

"Well, to talk!" She smiled brightly.

"Talk? You mean like, with me?" He asked timidly.

The blonde laughed. "No, with the table behind you."

He turned around to look at the table, then Claire quickly turned him to look at her. "Yes with you, silly! I was just joking!" she laughed again at how gullible Cliff was.

His blush darkened. "I'm not very fun to talk to..." He said, staring intensely at the crate in the corner of the room.

"I beg to differ!" she said, having fun with him already. His expression didn't change, and Claire's smile faded away a bit. _Wow, he's making the atmosphere really awkward. _

They remained silent for a while, not know what to say. "H-how about I tell you what's been on my mind, ok?" He suggested, and his eyes shifted towards her.

_He's finally looking at me! _"Yeah!" She nodded, anticipating what Cliff had to say.

Cliff examined the blonde's expression for a moment. _She seems really interested in what I have to say... _He took a deep breath. "You live alone, right Claire?"

She nodded. "Yes sir!"

"That itself must be a challenge." He took his eyes off of Claire and looked over at the crate again. "But don't you ever get lonely?" He mumbled.

Claire remained silent for a moment. She always like to look at positive side of things, so she constantly overlooked the negative ends. It was true that she missed being woken up by a human being rather then an alarm clock, and she did miss living with her mom in the city, but she didn't tend to dwell on the fact that she was lonely. "Well yeah, I do." She finally responded.

A smile slowly appeared on Cliff's face, and he turned to look at her again. "I see. So you get lonely too then. But it must not be too bad since you've got the nice valley folks and animals." The brunet stated.

"Yeah! The valley people are very kind!" Claire said before laughing nervously. "Not to mention the amount of patience they have..." She mumbled under her breath.

"Sorry to ask you weird stuff, it was just on my mind. Glad it's off my chest now."

Claire shook her head. "Oh, it's alright."

The two continued to talk for a while, which lead to Claire finding out where Cliff resides in Mineral Town to how often he came by to the valley.

"So your favorite food is Finest Curry? Wow, I've heard it's very hard to make..." Claire said, thinking about the times her mother would become frustrated with the dish and just order something to eat. She laughed at the faint memory.

"It's very complex." stated the brunet, smiling awkwardly. "I can't make it, so I rarely eat it."

An idea popped into Claire's mind. "I'll cook it for you! If I every get the chance, I'll cook it for you, and we can eat it together!" she suggested, smiling warmly at Cliff.

"Really? That would be great!" He smiled widely. "Well, Claire. I think it's time you left. Don't you have a farm to take care of?"

The blonde was so caught up in conversation, she forget that she was going to plant the seeds she had bought today. "Oh! It completely slipped my mind! Well, I'll see you around Cliff!" She shouted as she headed towards the door.

"See you later, Claire." He waved as she sprinted towards the entrance, then slamming the doors closed.

_Crash!_

The brunet jumped and turned around, seeing that the force of the doors slamming caused a couple of plates and bowls to fall out of the shelves and hit the floor.

Ruby quickly rushing into the kitchen, and gasped at the sight of her dinnerware scattered into a million pieces across the floor. She turned to look at Cliff. "Claire?"

"Claire." He nodded.

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Whoops! Looks like you should be more careful next time, huh Claire? Anyway, I'm so glad I finally finished this chapter, I thought I never would. Anyway, if you want new chapter to be put up, please review!

Hope you enjoyed!


	2. Cooking Lessons From A Thief?

**Author's Notes: **Thanks for the reviews ! I know you can't go into Mineral Town in HMDS Cute, but I'm breaking the rules! As for Claire's friends, I was really scared over what you guys would think about it, but I really want Claire to have 'bad' magical friends. I thought it over, and although Claire's personality might make it hard to believe that she has mischievous friends, i've seen characters like Claire have the most evil, sadistic friends (without any betrayal involved) and it works out just fine. So I figured, why not? Claire's first friend? the Witch Princess. Her second? …Well, read, and try not to hate me for it, but I just love him so much. I thought I'd throw him in here too, even though he's gotten enough attention from me already.

Anyway, enough rambling, enjoy!

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><p>"Can you teach me how to make Finest Curry?" asked Claire, as she barged into the Witch Princess' home, without even so much as a hello.<p>

"What the – ? Oh, it's only you, Claire." She stepped down from the steps that lead to a large cauldron in the middle of the room, where the Witch Princess usually mixed her potions.

For the past couple of weeks, Claire had frequent meetings with Cliff, who gradually started revealing a bit more about himself. The farm girl was anxious to know more, as the famous phrase '_The way to man's heart is through his stomach_' came to mind. She promised him a picnic Thursday afternoon in Mineral Town. Sadly, she had put it off til the day before, and now she needed someone to teach her, and fast.

The cheerful blonde noticed that the Witch Princess was holding a bottle filled with a strange purple bubbly substance. The Witch Princess caught Claire's glance and offered her the bottle. "Will you drink this and tell me if it tastes funny?" She asked, but Claire noticed the Witch Princess usual grin, the one she used to hid her mischief.

Ignoring the question, Claire changed the subject. "I need to learn how to make Finest Curry! I promised Cliff I would make him some for tomorrow's picnic and now I need someone to teach me! I've gone around the whole valley, but no one knows how to make it!" She exclaimed, started to panic.

The shorter blonde put down the potion, figuring that it was worth a shot. "Don't ask me, I'm terrible at household chores. Just look around." She said nonchalantly, and walked back up the steps to continue working on her potion.

Claire took a look around, noticing the books carelessly throw onto the floor, the bed cover that was falling off the foot of the bed, and the cluttered mess that spread all over the Witch Princess' table. She sighed heavily, disappointed that nobody in town had the recipe to Finest Curry, and ones that did had no knowledge whatsoever on how to cook it. She picked up the bed covers, making the Witch Princess' bed. "You know, you really should clean up around her once in a while." She mumbled.

The Witch Princess' saw Claire's disappointed reaction and made a face to her scolding. It was very rare to see Claire frowning, and when she did, it changed the atmosphere completely. Then the Witch Princess remembered someone who just might help Claire. She stepped down once again and began to speak. "Well, there is one more person you didn't ask. He's pretty well know, and he's amazing at cooking curry, but he's very discreet about it. Don't tell any of the town's people about him." She warned.

Claire's mood soon flipped like a switch when she heard what the Witch Princess was telling her. "Really? You do? That's great! Who is he and where can I find him?"

The smaller blonde looked off to the side, unsure whether it was a good idea to get Claire involved with people like him. _She seems really desperate though, I wouldn't want to let her down. Besides, what's the worse that could happen? _Eyes shifting back to Claire, she began. "Well, don't ask me how I know any of this, because I won't tell you, but he's at the Goddess Spring on sunny nights. Around 12am, if I'm correct."

Claire's eyes widened. "12am? Wow, that's really late! A little too late for a curry chef like him to be awake." She shrugged, but excited that she would get to meet a chef. "At least I get to meet a famous cook!" She beamed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

The Witch Princess frowned. Claire was starting to make her own conclusions. _Damn, now she's making things up! I better set her straight before she gets the wrong idea.. _"Well uh... I didn't exactly say he was a curry chef, and he is famous but not in a good –"

Claire stopped listening after she thought about what other amazing recipes she could learn from the chef that could impress Cliff. _Maybe he knows how to make other deserts that mother never taught me! At this rate, Cliff and I will be the best of friends! _She thought happily.

She threw her arms around the Witch Princess, embracing her tightly. "Thank you so much! I'll promise to bring you some leftovers!" She exclaimed before finally letting go of the baffled blonde.

The Witch Princess violently shook her head to get rid of the care that Claire had shown her. "What do I look like? Some sort of trash can?" she retorted.

The smiling blonde overlooked the Witch Princess' complaint. "I'll see you later, Witch Princess!" She exclaimed, before rushing out the front door, slamming the door closed.

Like yesterday's incident – which Claire was not aware of – the force of the slam caused the hut to shake a bit, and caused the potion that the Witch Princess had set down earlier to fall off the table and hit the ground, which sent pieces of glass to fly everywhere. Startled, the blonde turned around, seeing her mixture spilled all over the floor, then soon after heard a sizzling sound. The puddle of the purple potion was replaced by a hole. It had burned through the floor, revealing the foundation below the hut.

"Wow." said the Witch Princess. "I am really glad she didn't drink that."

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><p>The farm girl impatiently waited by the Goddess Pond. <em>Where is this famous chef? I need to learn how to cook Finest Curry now! <em>She thought angrily, before she took a deep breath, trying to calm her anger. _Maybe he just got caught up in something, yeah. That's why he's late._

"Well, what's a pretty maiden like you doing out at these hours?" said a voice.

Claire jumped, turning around and seeing a silver-haired young man – quite handsome, she might add – smirking and staring at her. She examined him up and down, before turning around and looking at the dirt path again. "Sorry, sir. I can't talk. I'm waiting for a curry chef to come by. I need to learn how to cook Finest Curry!" exclaimed the blonde, before folding her arms and sighed heavily. "Something tells me he's not coming..."

The silver-haired man chuckled. "Finest Curry... It's my favorite dish. In fact, I can –"

The young farmer stopped listening to him as disappointment filled her thoughts again. "Well, I guess I'll get going then..." Claire mumbled, as she hung her head and began to walk towards town.

The man quickly grabbed her wrist. "Someone with your beauty should at least keep me company for a while." He chuckled, and smirked.

Claire sighed, and ignored his compliment. "I can't stay. I need to go to sleep and see if they have any take-out restaurants in Mineral Town that have Finest Curry on the menu." She replied, pulling her hand away.

"They don't." He informed her, before chuckling once more. "Besides, I could teach you how to cook Finest Curry. Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Phantom Skye, prince of the–"

Claire smiled widely and twirled around to look at him. "You can? That's great! You need to teach me how to cook it right now, Mr. Ghost man!" She squealed, and grabbing his arm and dragging him into town.

"H-Hey! It's Phantom Skye!" He corrected her, but the blonde girl refused to acknowledge his name.

Claire suddenly stopped in her tracks. _Wait a minute. I don't have a kitchen._ It had slipped her mind that her house wasn't big enough to have a kitchen. Where was she going to cook the food now? She laughed nervously. "Um... Mr. Ghost, do you know where we could cook Finest Curry? I forget that I don't have a kitchen..." She mumbled, a bit embarrassed that something so important was the last thing on her mind.

"It's _Phantom Skye_, and I'm glad you asked. You see, I know the exact place where we could cook it." He chuckled, and he took her hand and lead her to the Inn.

"Why are we going to the Inn? At these hours no one will be there to assist you." She stated, not sure what his intentions were.

He smirked once more. "You've obviously never heard of me before..." He flipped his hair out of his face and smirked. "Just follow and don't ask anymore questions."

The blonde raised a brow. "Well, just so you know, the front doors are locked." She said, as he grabbed the handles.

"He he. Just making sure they weren't open. You know people can be pretty careless sometimes." Claire looked around, seeing if any other places might be open. She was suddenly startled by a door creaking, and when she looked back at Skye, he had opened the door.

The farmer was dumbfounded. "W-what? How did you possibly –"

He put his finger on her mouth, interrupting her. "I was quite clear when I told you to stop asking questions." He smirked before quickly adding. "I don't think I caught your name."

She gently removed his finger and smiled. "I'm Claire! I took over the run down farm not too far from here." She said.

He put his hand under her chin, tilting her head so she looked at him as he stepped closer. "Claire... a beautiful name for a gorgeous maiden much like yourself." He chuckled. _She won't be able to resist me. _He thought arrogantly.

But to the thief's dismay, Claire's expression remained unchanged. "Do you do this to every girl you meet? Because if you do, you must be breaking a lot of girls' hearts." She scolded lightly.

He made a face. "What?... Why are you... You should be.." He quickly took a sharp breath and simply stopped talking. _No girl's ever been immune to my charm! She must be gay. _He thought, nodding his head. _Yeah, that makes sense. She definitely must be. I've never seen a girl who could just stand there unamused while I compliment them._

The perky blonde giggled. "You sure are making a lot of weird faces." She said. "So are you going to teach me how to cook or what?"

He shook his head. "Yeah, yeah. I'll teach you. Let's go." He muttered, slightly angry at Claire's immunity to his charm.

The two snuck into the kitchen, doing their best to keep quiet. Once inside, Skye closed the door and flipped the first switch, and the sudden light blinded Claire for a moment. Blinking, she followed Skye, who was grabbing ingredients from the cabinets. She watched him, and noticed how he seemed to know exactly where everything was.

"Hey..." She began. "Something tells me you've been here before."

"He he. Guilty." He smirked, and pulled out a pot, setting it on the stove. "Come here." and the blonde followed orders immediately.

For the rest of the night, Skye taught her the steps. He taught her how much to put in, some tips that would make it taste better, and much more things. The two also began small conversation while they waited for the food to cook. Claire told him everything that had happened since she had moved from the city, which scared him a bit.

"You... You did _all _that in just one week?" He asked, a bit worried. He eyed the pot, making sure it didn't explode or something of the sort.

The blonde girl nodded. "Yep! All of that in just one week..." She smiled nervously. "I just tend to bring a bit of bad luck when I get too excited. I was just so happy that was back in my father's village, that I kind of caused some chaos..." He continued to eye the pot, and Claire caught his stare. She laughed. "I know what you're thinking, don't worry. I'm a really great cook, I've never burnt a dish in my life." She giggled. "I can't say the same for the person who taught me though..." _Mother wasn't exactly the greatest cook around... but she taught me everything I know._

Once they completely finished cooking, Claire grabbed a container and poured the Finest Curry inside, storing it for tomorrow. Skye had grabbed a spoon, scooping up some of the curry, and guided it into his mouth. His eyes widened and he smiled at Claire. "Wow! This is amazing! Almost as great as mine..." He smirked.

She ignored his boasting and smiled. "Thank you! I really hope Cliff likes it..." She beamed, looking hopefully at the container.

He simply smirked and glanced over at the door. "Well, you learned how to cook Finest Curry, so I guess my time here is done." He said, before quickly adding. "Besides, I wouldn't want to get caught here."

The blonde tilted her head at his statement. "Why would you want to..." Then she thought for a moment. _I overheard Lumina and Sebastian talking one morning while I was headed to the Witch Princess' hut... They said something about a phantom thief... _"What did you say your name was?"

He raised a brow at Claire's question. _How many times do I have to tell this girl my name?.. _"Phantom Skye." He said, for the fourth time tonight.

Her eyes widened. "You're a thief!" She exclaimed. "No wonder you knew where everything was..." She mumbled to herself, realizing every little action that was suspicious tonight.

He chuckled. "Look like you've finally caught on, and here I thought you'd never figure it out." He walked towards the shocked girl in front of him and looked at her. "I never like to do this, but I'm afraid it's the only way to keep you quiet..." He said, frowning.

_Eh? Is he going to kill me? But I wasn't even going to say anything! Ohgodwhatdoidonow? _The blonde

thought, as she eyed the door. _Quick! This is your chance! Make a break for it!_ But Claire found herself unable to move. _I know! Maybe if I tell him that I'll keep my mouth shut, he won't murder me!_

He took a step back, before looking at Claire intensely.

"I'm not going to say anything."

"Chick beam F – wait, what?" He asked, stopping himself in mid sentence.

_Perfect, now's my chance to explain myself. _"I don't care that you're a thief. It's the path you choose in life, right? In fact, we could be friends, if you like." She smiled warmly.

_What the hell is wrong with this girl? Isn't she supposed to run away? Isn't she afraid that I might do something to her? And she actually wants to be my friend? _He thought, completely puzzled. _She is definitely smoking something. _"Okay..." He began. "Exactly how high are you?"

Claire was taken aback. "Wha? _High? _I'm not high! I'm just being friendly! Haven't you ever met a kind person before?"

"Frankly, no I haven't. And I'm pretty certain you're on something."

The farmer made a face. "I'm perfectly sane, thank you very much." She shook her head, and took a deep breath. "I meant everything I said, just for the record."

Skye thought for a moment. "Well, that's a relief. For a moment, I though I'd have to cast a spell on you."

Claire's eyes widened, and she smiled. "Spell? You can cast a spell?" She asked, about to burst with excitement.

Skye took a step back again, and looked at Claire. "Well, yes. I can."

"That's so cool!" She squealed. "It must be awesome! You must be like, _whoosh! _And everyone else is like, _woah!_" Claire was always easily excited by magic and other things her mother told her didn't exist.

"Actually, no. It's not exactly like that at all. All it does is –"

But Claire failed to listen to the explanation of the Maiden Chick Beam. "Wow! I'm friends with a magician-thief!" She exclaimed, fascination twinkling in her eyes. "This is amazing!"

"W-What? Magician?" He stuttered. "That's not what I said at all! Are you even listening to me?"

"Wow! I knew magic existed! I just never thought I'd meet so many people in this town with them! This is so exciting!" The blonde exclaimed, as she swung her arms up excitedly. Her left arm made contact with the pot on the stove, knocking it over. The pot crashed against the floor, and the contents inside spilled all over the ground. The pot was still hot, and Claire burned her arm.

"Oww!" She yelled, jumping back, and bumping into a pile of crates behind her, causing them to topple over. They hit the ground with a loud crash and vegetables began to roll across the floor.

Skye realized with all the noise they were making, the guests and owner would awaken, catching both Skye and Claire in the kitchen. He quickly reacted and grabbed Claire's arm, pulling her out of the mess and fleeing the area. Fortunately, Claire snatched the container filled with curry in time to get away. Unfortunately, Skye grabbed her left arm.

"Oww! Skye, that hu -"

"Shh!" The thief hissed, continuing to run until they were out of the Inn, on the far east side of Vesta's farm. "You should be getting home now, a young maiden like you shouldn't be out at this hour."

Claire was out of breath. She bent over, putting her hands on her knees, panting. "You're... Right... I Think I'll ... See you around... Skye." She said, taking breaths in-between.

"Sweet dreams, Claire."

She finally stood up to look at him, but when she did, he was gone. "Eh?" She turned around, looking back and forth. "That's some Houdini thief."

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><p>The blonde was on her way to Mineral Town, walking the hidden path that would take her to the town. She had gone a little old fashion with the whole picnic thing, carrying a basket with a checkered blanket. Cliff had mentioned earlier that he was usually at the church, and she would be able to find him there.<p>

Claire skipped down the path, excited that she would finally get Cliff to eat her curry.

"Well look who it is! Hey Claire, what are you doing here?" Asked a young brunet, wearing a blue hat and overalls covered in dirt.

"Samuel! How's my favorite cousin doing? You look like you've been working pretty hard." The blonde commented, giggling at her cousin's worker bee mentality. "I'm looking for Cliff!"

He let out a loud groan. "Oh, _him."_

Claire's eyes narrowed. "You know Samuel, if you got to know him, you'd really like him! He's actually really sweet!" She stated, scolding him. "Give em' a chance."

The brunet looked over at Claire with an unamused expression. "Claire, please. That guy's definitely after my Ann." He said, narrowing his eyes and turning around to look at the church's entrance. "Well she's mine, dude!" He shouted angrily.

The blonde sweat-dropped. "Erm... I don't think he can hear you, and you're just being paranoid, Samuel."

"Yeah whatever." He muttered. "Have fun on your stupid date." He grumbled angrily.

"Thanks! I will!" She exclaimed happily, before realizing what the brunet had said. "Hey! It's not a date!" She yelled, as her cousin began to run back to his farm. She could feel a little bit of heat rise to her cheeks, and shook her head, trying to rid herself of the embarrassment she felt. She walked over to the church entrance and pulled the doors open.

"Cliff? Are you in here?" The blonde asked, walking down the aisle, inspecting the rows until she noticed Cliff standing in front of the first bench.

"Oh, H-Hello Claire..." He mumbled timidly, a small blush appearing across his cheeks.

She beamed a smile at him. "Remember what today is?" She said, nudging him playfully and looking over at the picnic basket in her hands.

He nodded acknowledging the basket and smelling the scent of Finest Curry. "It's smells delicious!" He exclaimed, a smile slowly appearing on his face.

Claire smiled at the vagabond. Seeing him smile made her feel like she was being a good friend. "Well, let's go!" She exclaimed, grabbing the brunet's wrist and pulling him towards the exit of the church.

Stand at the end of the altar was the church's priest, Pastor Carter, who was watching the two rush out the door. He smiled. "Glad you could make some new friends, Cliff." He said to himself, before turning around and continuing his daily duties.

The two walked down the stone path in silence for a while, until Claire spoke up.

"So Cliff, what's this I hear about a girl... Ann, I think he name was?" The blonde chirped, and as soon as she brought Ann's name up, the vagabond smiled weakly and blushed just a bit.

Claire mouth turned into an upside V shape, and realization struck her. _'So he likes her!'_

"Ann... She's a really n-nice girl, but its not I c-could ever..." He stumbled over words and his face turned red as soon as he realized what he was trying to say. "N-Not that she isn't pretty! I-It's just that... Your c-cousin seems to like her... He glares at me if I even try to look her direction..."

The bubbly blonde laughed. She knew how Cliff felt talking about girls, but she would still poke fun at him once in a while. "That's Samuel for ya. Never misses a step." She laughed a bit more before going on. "Don't let him stop you though, all's fair in love and war!"

The vagabond's eyes widened and he shook his head violently. "N-No! Claire! Honestly I d-don't like her l-like that!" He stuttered, flustered by her encouragement.

She tilted her head as a confused gesture. "Hmm? You don't? But you seem to like her!"

He looked away, scratching his cheek in a rather awkward motion. "N-No! I mean, I like someone else a-anyways." He mumbled, before quickly regretting his words. _'Really wish I __hadn't said that...' _

"You do?" She smiled. "Who is she? You have to tell me! So I can help you win her heart!"

He chuckled nervously, before evading the question. "L-Look, we've reached the Goddess Spring!" He said, pointing toward the waterfall that poured into the small body of water.

Claire's smile widened. "It's even more gorgeous than the one in Forget-Me-Not Valley!" She exclaimed, running towards the waterfall, with Cliff not too far behind.

Catching up to her, he began to speak. "It's really beautiful isn't it? I like it too." He said, noticing Claire's child-like happiness, which seemed quite... Adorable. Cliff's face then flushed. '_W-What am I thinking! She's just a f-friend!' _He told himself, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

When he opened his eyes once again, he saw that the farmer had already spread out the blanket. She pulled out a plastic container, filled with Finest Curry. She pulled out a couple of plates and served Cliff his plate of food. The smell of curry drifted among the air, and the brunet was literally about to start drooling.

"Well, let's enjoy the food!" She said, picking up a forkful of curry and bringing to her mouth.

"C-Claire? You made this? It's looks d-delicious!" He said, stumbling on a couple of words, as he instantly took a bite - and purred in satisfaction.

The farmer smiled. "With a little help from a friend. He's a very good curry chef."

"I didn't know you could make something like this, it really is great." He said, before smiling warmly at her and continuing to eat.

A faint blush appeared on Claire's face and she quickly looked at down at her plate. "Thanks." She simply said, before feeding herself another forkful of curry.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong> Aww. Disappointed that that's all your getting? Sorry guys, my creativity has been on low for this WHOLE SUMMER and I'm so angry at myself because of it! I was hoping that I could finally finish Stolen Heart. But I was wrong. Anyway, I've been meaning to update these two stories before Monday, because once I start school I'm probably not going to able to finish anything. Anywhore, enough of my rambling.

R&R!


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